Wednesday morning UK news briefing: Today's top headlines from The Telegraph

1. Boris Johnson faces Cabinet battle over defence spending

Boris Johnson is resisting public pressure from his own Defence Secretary and the head of the Army to increase military spending amid a Cabinet split over future funding.

On Wednesday, the Prime Minister will say that the UK is spending 2.3 per cent of GDP on defence as he arrives at a Nato summit to agree an international push into eastern Europe to ward off the threat from Russia. Read the full story.

2. Dame Deborah James dies aged 40 after battle with bowel cancer

Boris Johnson has hailed Dame Deborah James as an "inspiration" and said that because of her campaigning work "many, many lives will be saved".

The podcaster, who was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016, died on Tuesday after spending her final weeks receiving end-of-life care at home with her husband, Sebastien, and their two children. Read the full story.

3. Meeting Jeffrey Epstein 'biggest regret of my life', says Ghislaine Maxwell as she is jailed for 20 years

Ghislaine Maxwell said meeting Jeffrey Epstein was the “biggest regret" of her life as a judge sentenced the disgraced British socialite to 20 years in prison for her role in a “horrific scheme” to abuse underage girls.

Approaching the New York courtroom podium with shackles around her feet, Maxwell told victims gathered in the public gallery that she was “sorry” for the pain that Epstein's sexual abuse had caused and hoped her imprisonment would bring them “some measure of peace and finality.” Read the full story.

4. Nicola Sturgeon wrongfoots UK Government by sending independence fight to Supreme Court

Nicola Sturgeon is to take her battle to stage her own independence referendum to the UK Supreme Court as she blindsided the Prime Minister by demanding an urgent ruling on whether this would be lawful.

The First Minister said she would not allow Scotland to be a “prisoner of Boris Johnson” by allowing him to block another separation vote and disclosed her preferred date for a rerun was Oct 19 next year. Read the full story.

5. Donald Trump 'grabbed Secret Service agent by throat' on day of Capitol riots

Donald Trump tried to seize the steering wheel of his presidential car and grabbed his Secret Service agent by the throat on the day of the Capitol riots, a former White House aide testified on Tuesday.

Cassidy Hutchinson said Mr Trump was "irate" when his head of security, Bobby Engel, told him it was unsafe for him to go to join his supporters on Jan 6, 2021. Read the full story.